The deafening cheers greeting the newlyweds as they stepped on to the balcony at Buckingham Palace spoke far louder than words.

Nothing could have told the Queen more clearly how important Kate Middleton was going to be to the Royal Family.

It was clear that the wedding of commoner Kate to her grandson Prince William had inspired the nation – and beyond, as two billion people watched worldwide.

The royals were enjoying levels of popularity not seen since Princess Diana.

The Queen, her smile as bright as her Angela Kelly primrose dress, looked on approvingly as Kate and William sealed their future with two kisses, to roars of approval from the delighted throng below.

One courtier recalls: “The Queen was so happy on the wedding day, she was practically skipping. Seeing her family full of joy but also seeing the public support and excitement touched her greatly.

“She was very supportive of William and Kate leading up to the wedding and nothing could have reaffirmed more that they have the potential to achieve great things for the monarchy. The whole of Britain seemed to have turned up to wish them well.”

If the Queen was wary about William marrying a young woman with no experience of the pressures of royal life, she had good reason.

(Image: Getty)

She had seen the fairytale marriage of Charles and Diana crumble with devastating consequences, culminating in them both separately admitting adultery on national TV.

Their separation in 1992, divorce in 1996, and Diana’s death in a Paris car crash in 1997, rocked the Royal Family to its core, and the Queen felt the impact deeply.

A source says: “There is a definite feeling of wanting to give Kate time to get used to her royal life rather than thrust her in at the deep end and say, ‘OK, off you go’. The Queen supports the idea she should be allowed to take things at her own pace.”

Talking about Kate and her family, William has also said: “I want to make sure they have the best guidance and the chance to see what life is like in the family...

“I wanted to give her a chance to see in and to back out if she needed to before it all got too much.”

(Image: Getty)

The new Duchess of Cambridge, whose mum was an air stewardess and dad a flight dispatcher, was daunted by her in-laws.

After getting engaged Kate, 30, said: “It’s nerve-racking because I don’t know the ropes really... But I’m willing to learn quickly and work hard.”

From the start the Queen has monitored Kate’s progress, particularly on her 10-day tour of Canada and the US last July.

Kate was given weeks of tutoring by the Palace on etiquette, French language, local politics and the Canadian Constitution. And on a personal note, the Queen loaned Kate her diamond maple leaf brooch – the very one she wore on her first visit to Canada in 1951.

A source says: “Canada is extremely important to the Queen and everyone was watching and wondering how Kate would do. Anyone entering the Royal Family has to work to build up trust and prove that they are committed and up to the job.

“So far, Kate has shown herself to be more than willing and more than capable.

“She is humble and keen to learn and the Queen likes that. She has grown very fond of her and recognises the impact she is having on the public.”

(Image: Getty)

The Queen has also done her best to get to know Kate’s family. She invited Carole and Michael Middleton to lunch a few days before the wedding and they were also her guests at Ascot last June.

A source says: “Charles and Camilla have met the Middletons loads of times, but the fact that the Queen has gone out of her way to make the effort with them is a huge vote of confidence in Kate.”

Kate and William have started their married life under the radar in Anglesey, where William is a Search and Rescue pilot – just like the newlywed Princess Elizabeth who retreated to Malta when Philip’s duties with the Navy took him there between 1949 and 1951. She “loved” being a Navy wife.

In today’s Radio Times, BBC presenter Andrew Marr, says of the Queen: “Even her family find her a little enigmatic.

“Prince William put it well: ‘I think she doesn’t care for celebrity… and she really minds about having privacy in general.

"And I think it’s very important to be able to retreat inside and be able to collect one’s thoughts and collect your ideas… and then to move forwards.

"It was a very tricky line to draw between private and public duty. She’s carved her own way completely. She’s not had a blueprint.’”

This year as the Queen celebrates her Diamond Jubilee aged 85, she knows it will soon be time to make way for a new generation of royals.

A source says: “The Queen has worked tirelessly to keep the monarchy relevant. She made royal visits less formal, created the walkabout in 1970 in Australia, and has even got her own Facebook page.”

(Image: Getty)

And it is clear her husband is still her rock. Marr refers to an interview Prince Harry gave just before the Duke of Edinburgh’s heart scare at Christmas, in which Harry referred to her ability to turn up, still smiling, at places she might not want to be.

He quotes Harry as saying: “These are the things that, at her age, she shouldn’t be doing, yet she’s carrying on and doing them.

"Regardless of whether my grandfather seems to be doing his own thing, sort of wandering off like a fish down the river, the fact that he’s there – I don’t think that she could do it without him.’”

When William fell in love with fellow student Kate, the Queen told the world she was “absolutely delighted”. Ever since she has been keen for them to forge their own way.

William said: “It’s very much the case that she won’t necessarily force advice on you. She’ll let you work it out for yourself... you have to make it work. You have to do what you think is right.”

So far the couple have taken things slowly, carrying out a few select public engagements each month.

Kate has become Patron of just four charities – Action on Addiction, East Anglia’s Children’s Hospices, the Art Room and the National Portrait Gallery – and also agreed to volunteer with the Scouts.

A source says: “There is a feeling that Kate and William are doing the right thing in the Queen’s eyes by not taking on too much so they can be fully involved with the charities they do support.

“And she is impressed by Kate’s clear sense of direction about what kind of causes she is interested in.”

Kate’s hands-on approach was demonstrated when she spearheaded the display of her wedding dress for Buckingham Palace’s summer opening.

Viewing last year’s exhibition with Kate, the Queen described the ghost-like display as “horrid”, commenting how it was made to look very “creepy”.

Kate confidently laughed it off and the pair joked again when the Queen looked at the reconstructed wedding cake and quipped: “We did eat this?”

It may seem as if they have little in common. One was born into a life of privilege and duty while the other is the great-great-granddaughter of a miner. But both are shaping Britain’s history.

The Queen was only 25 when her father King George VI died in his sleep and she inherited the crown.

Kate’s big moment came in happier circumstances on April 29, 2011, when she married Prince William.

But that day as the two women stood on the Palace balcony, they shared in the magic of knowing they were both responsible for the cheering scenes below.